8 BULLETIN 664, L. 61 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



(piatc for in tlic heavy shipping season a large number are required. 

 At a much greater cumber of places ready-made frames have never 

 been seen.- Then the making of some such device devolves upon the 

 shipper. He will find that 2- by 1-inch lumber is commonly the most 

 satisfactory material. The frame must be very rigidly constructed, 

 and must fit the space in the car that is to be filled. After the 

 frames are placed in position, a wedge may be driven down between 

 them to make them tight. The lumber needed to make such a frame 

 costs from -"i" cents to $2, depending upon the size of the space to he 

 tilled. 



BRACING THE LOAD. 1 



Bracing- is not needed when the number of cases in the load or the 

 size of the car is such that the top layer of cases completely fills 

 the car from bunker to bunker. Very commonly, however, there is 

 a shortage of cases on the top layer, so that it does not extend from 

 end to end or to the middle buffer. 



The preliminary survey of the industrial practices showed that 

 many loads were self braced — that is, the weight and position of 

 packages were depended upon to keep them from shifting or roam- 

 ing free over the interior of the car. Another practice is to nail 

 beams over or in front of cases to be braced, the lumber being usu- 

 ally a 2- by 4-inch strip. These beams are nailed to the walls of 

 the car, either directly or by way of blocks. Obviously, these nails 

 ruin the insulation of the refrigerator car and almost always fail 

 to hold the brace. The 2 by 4 is commonly placed with the 4-inch 

 side vertical, making the strain come against the weakest dimension 

 and causing it to snap. The time and expense in procuring, adjust- 

 ing, and fastening these braces is practically wasted (p. 20). 



This unsatisfactory condition led to a search for an efficient, cheap, 

 and simple brace. In response to the need, a brace consisting of two 

 2 by 4's (fig. 4), so placed across the width of the car that the 



Pig. 4. — Brace of i! by 4's to be used under cases and placed across the car id prevent 



shifting to top layer. 



row of cases immediately in front of the incomplete top layer is 

 raised about 2 inches (fig. 3). has been developed. If the strips 

 are laid on the floor, the placing of the load must be accurately 

 planned to make sure that they are in the proper position. If the 



1 For the purposes of this report, the term " bracing" will express the means by which 

 a lesser number of cases than a full layer are prevented from roaming during transit. 



